Spotlights

Spotlight: Celebrating World Adoption Day with Don Carlson

At Amergis Healthcare Staffing, our team members are at the heart of everything we do. Each month, our Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) board highlights stories of Amergis employees who demonstrate our core values and commitment to connecting people to work that matters.

About World Adoption Day

Every year on November 9^th we celebrate World Adoption Day. It’s a day meant to raise awareness about the adoption community and empower those touched by adoption to share their stories. In honor of World Adoption Day, our D&I team spoke with Don Carlson to learn about his journey as an adoptive parent and the deep bonds that form through family.

Don’s Story

Can you tell us more about your role, what you do, and how you joined Amergis?

I am a Director of Business Operations. I oversee the branch activities, help set goals and strategies for the team. I started as a Recruiter outside of Chicago in 2012.

Can you share a bit about your adoption journey and how you became a parent?

My wife and I always talked about adoption as part of our family plan, but when we found out we could not have children of our own, adoption became our goal. We explored a few different directions and chose a foster-to-adopt route. We explored public and private adoptions and settled on the public foster process with fostering with an intention of adoption.

What was the most surprising part of the adoption process?

The length of the journey. The approval process took almost a year, and the total process took nearly five years. Once you are in that world you are amazed by the number of people you learn have adopted a child, are a foster parent, or were an adopted child. Amergis has a whole network of people who are involved in the foster/adoption community and have been incredibly supportive.

Are there any traditions, activities or hobbies that you especially enjoy doing with your child/children?

My son started playing football last year and I joined him as a coach. This year my daughter also decided she wanted to play and my wife is a coach on her team. Outside of football, we love spending time outside with our dogs, fishing, and exploring northern Wisconsin

What have you learned about yourself through adoption?

How important a good support system is in your life; our adoption process took almost three years to complete with multiple trips to the courthouse. There were moments that were heartbreaking, and disappointing, but the support of friends and family and sharing the journey with them gave my wife and I the resiliency to persevere.

What advice would you give to someone considering adoption?

Do it! There is no such thing as a bad kid, and there are so many children that are looking for someone to just be there for them, love them and support them. I believe if you have the opportunity to make a positive impact in the world you have an obligation to do so. It’s not easy, but every smile on their face makes it completely worth it.

Join the Amergis Healthcare Staffing Team

Amergis Staffing always has a wide range of available opportunities for people who want to accelerate their careers. We embrace employees from all backgrounds and follow our core values to foster a welcoming work environment:

• Promoting diversity and inclusion
• Winning with integrity and trust
• Prioritizing quality
• Investing in development
• Championing innovation
• Driving for results

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